Untied Strings
by gluglug
Summary: Post "Those Are Strings Pinocchio" - Luke tells Lorelai about his dream.


Title: Untied Strings  
  
Author: Gluglug  
  
Spoiler Warning/Timing: Third Season Finale  
  
Rating: PG  
  
Summary: Luke tells Lorelai about his dream.  
  
Disclaimer: Gilmore Girls and all characters are property of The Dubba Dubba Dubba WB, Dorothy Parker Drank Here Productions and Amy Sherman- Palladino. They don't belong to me, just borrowing.  
  
"Don't get engaged."  
  
"What? Why?"  
  
Lorelai turned on her heel and left the diner, leaving Luke alone and bewildered as the bells above the diner door jingled. She was gone; all that was left was the scent of her perfume.  
  
Luke woke with a start and remembered where he was. He was alone in his apartment and had fallen asleep in his La-Z-Boy chair, in front of the TV. The credits were rolling on some unknown movie. He must be getting old, he thought, napping in the late afternoon like an old man. He looked at his watch, it was almost 8PM; he had been asleep for at least an hour.  
  
The dream seemed so real, and yet unreal. Lorelai would never walk into the diner and just blurt something out like that. Although she had been forthcoming with advice to Luke about Nicole, she would never tell him how to run his life. Luke was confused. Before he had the dream, he made up his mind that he was going to take that vacation with Nicole. Even if he didn't want to lead her on he had been looking forward to getting out of Stars Hollow for a couple of weeks.  
  
When was the last time he had been on a real vacation? He had gone fishing for a few days last year and he had taken day trips with Nicole to New York City and the Catskills for some skiing, but a real vacation? Luke decided he needed one with the stress of Jess leaving for California. Plus Stars Hollow slowed down in the summer so he wouldn't be losing that much business anyway, lots of folks would be away.  
  
Folks like Lorelai and Rory. They would be spending two months in Europe, backpacking their way around, flirting in broken French, Italian, Spanish or whatever looking for Johnny Depp and Antonio Banderas. Luke wanted to tell Lorelai that Antonio was in New York, starring in "Nine." He knew this because Nicole wanted to see it and planned to get tickets. But Lorelai would just tease him that he was becoming a Broadway baby, so he held his tongue.  
  
His mind always wandered to Lorelai. She was really leaving tomorrow and he wouldn't see her for weeks. That was it, he was going on vacation. Better be distracted by the beauty of the Great White North than moping around the diner, missing his favorite coffee addict.  
  
But back to the dream, what did it mean? Was it wish fulfillment? Or was it just Luke's way of telling himself that Nicole's not the one? Luke wished he had someone to talk to; he couldn't just carry this around with him all summer. He needed to talk to Lorelai. In this situation, she might be the last person he should share this with, but she was his confidant. She was his only confidant, he realized. Besides, Lorelai had shared her dream with him about them being married and expecting twins, maybe it was his turn to share.  
  
Luke grabbed his keys and left his apartment, and walked quickly to Lorelai's house. He hoped he wouldn't be disturbing the Gilmores, but he had to see her. He needed to see her, to make sure he wasn't making the biggest mistake of his life. He rapped on the kitchen door and Rory answered, a little surprised to see him, having said their goodbyes earlier in the day at Chilton.  
  
"Hey Luke, if you're here for the party, you're too late."  
  
"Party?" Luke had momentarily forgotten that Rory was having a small post- graduation celebration. "Oh sorry, um, no. Rory, is your mom available?"  
  
Rory raised an eyebrow, wondering what was on Luke's mind. "Mom? She's still packing for tomorrow. I'm trying to talk her down to bringing four pairs of shoes, so we'll be up late, bargaining with each other." Rory realized she was babbling.  
  
"Sorry, I'll get her. Why don't you come in?"  
  
"Nah, I'll wait outside on the porch."  
  
"Suit yourself." Luke saw Rory disappear up the stairs and a minute later Lorelai appeared. She was still wearing the red dress she had worn earlier that day although she was now wearing a pair of fuzzy pink slippers. She opened the door and saw Luke waiting for her leaning against the porch rail, still dressed in his blue dress shirt and navy trousers.  
  
Luke chuckled at the sight of her outfit. "Nice slippers."  
  
Lorelai laughed. "Yeah, when Rory and I hit Paris, the city, not the person, I'm planning to call all the fashion houses and convince them that this is the latest in haute couture."  
  
"Sorry to interrupt your packing, I hope I'm not disturbing you."  
  
"No, not at all. I need a break." Lorelai noticed that Luke looked a little preoccupied. "Hey, did you hear from Jess or something?"  
  
"Jess? Oh, no." Luke shook his head as he sat down on the front step.  
  
"So what is it, Luke? I'm kind of surprised to see you. I thought we had said our goodbyes today at graduation."  
  
"Yeah, so did I." Luke took a deep breath and dove right in. "After graduation I came back to my apartment and I was really tired. I feel asleep in front of the TV."  
  
"Like an old man." Lorelai teased as she came to sit beside him.  
  
Luke groaned in agreement. "Exactly. Um, anyway, I had this really weird dream and it kind of unsettled me and I'm hoping that maybe you could help me figure it out."  
  
"Weird dream, huh? You didn't talk to my stomach in it did you?" Lorelai asked.  
  
Luke smiled at the mention of her dream twins. "No. But you were in my dream."  
  
Lorelai was intrigued. "Really? What did I do?"  
  
Luke's grew more anxious when he saw that her curiosity had been piqued. How could he tell her? He decided it was now or never. "Well, you came into the diner, and we talked a little about Rory's graduation ceremony and then all of a sudden you blurted out something and then left abruptly."  
  
Lorelai was getting impatient. "Luke, I don't have all night. you know. My backpack awaits."  
  
"Sorry. Um, you told me not to get engaged." Luke said quietly as he stared at his hands.  
  
Lorelai was silent for a few seconds and Luke was sure she could hear his heart pounding in anticipation so he spoke again, hoping she wouldn't notice that this could be a potentially life-changing moment for them.  
  
"I think I had the dream because I don't know what to do...about Nicole and this whole vacation thing. I mean after we had our little talk at graduation, I was all set to go on the trip. But when I woke up from the dream I felt like something is telling me that it's still wrong to go away with her."  
  
Lorelai looked at him soberly. "Luke, I think I know what your dream was telling you."  
  
"Not to get engaged?" He said hopefully.  
  
She nodded. "Well, yeah. But I think you're unsettled because it came from me. But it makes sense, if you think about it."  
  
"It does?" Luke held his breath.  
  
"Luke, ever since you and Nicole started been going out, I've kind of been your "Dear Abby" or whatever, giving you dating advice, although I'm not sure why since I'm no expert, as we both know." Lorelai took a breath.  
  
"Anyway, things have been coming along for the past few months and now you're at a crossroads and you're not sure what to do. You told me today that you don't want to lead Nicole on and this is just your mind's way of reinforcing that. You seem to put a lot of weight on the advice I give you and you feel bad about not wanting to commit to Nicole. It's easier if it's coming from someone else, so you don't have to take full responsibility for the guilt you're feeling."  
  
Luke absorbed her words and realized that her interpretation made sense, in a way. He WAS feeling guilty. But for all of her insight, Lorelai was still missing the big picture. She still didn't get it. Why he couldn't truly commit to Nicole. And as much as he wanted to explain why to Lorelai, he couldn't. She wouldn't hear him, she wasn't ready. He wondered if she ever would be ready. Now wasn't the time, not with her big trip tomorrow. And if she wasn't ready, he wasn't ready yet to give up on the first successful relationship he'd had with a woman since Rachel.  
  
Lorelai watched him intently, wondering what he was thinking. "Luke, are you pondering really slowly again?"  
  
Luke smiled resignedly and faced her. "Yeah, um, Lorelai, I guess you're right about the guilt. But I still don't know what to do about the vacation, though. Part of me really wants it. I mean, I really think it would be good for me to get out of Stars Hollow for a couple of weeks. With everything that's gone on with Jess, I need a break. And I do like spending time with Nicole, so maybe I should still go."  
  
Lorelai nodded. "Sure you should. And you never know. Your feelings might change about Nicole while you're together. You'll be spending lots of time with her so you might realize you want a commitment someday with her.....or not." She paused. "Take this time to really figure it out."  
  
"Is that what you're telling me to do, Dear Abby?"  
  
Lorelai chuckled. "Yes, that's what I'm telling you to do, lovelorn Lucas in Stars Hollow, CT."  
  
Luke sighed. "Thanks. Um, I guess I should get going." He stood up and Lorelai followed.  
  
"Yeah, I've got to get back to bargaining with Rory about how many pairs of shoes to bring."  
  
Luke pointed to her feet. "Don't forget the fuzzy slippers."  
  
Lorelai smiled. "I won't."  
  
Luke turned to go but Lorelai touched his arm, stopping him. "Hey, can I get a good-bye hug? I mean, we won't be seeing each other for weeks."  
  
Luke faced her and nodded. "Sure."  
  
They embraced for a long moment and Luke felt something different, a feeling separate from the other hugs they shared. A sense of sadness came over him, not because he wasn't going to see her for a while, but because he felt like he was saying good-bye to the dream that one day things would be different between them. That one day they would look at each other and the uncertainty would be gone. But this was not one of those days and Luke felt like she was slipping out of reach even as he held her close.  
  
As Luke and Lorelai reluctantly parted they gave each other a shy smile.  
  
"Have a great time on your trip, Lorelai."  
  
"Ditto, Luke."  
  
A sense of sadness too came over Lorelai as she watched him leave her front yard. She gave him a small wave as she closed the kitchen door. Lorelai wasn't sure what was causing her mood; it was probably just the emotions of the day getting to her. She tried to shake the melancholy; after all, she and Rory were going on the trip of their lives tomorrow and nothing was going to dampen her mood.  
  
As Luke headed home, he still felt sad but the unsettled feeling was gone, at least for now. He had talked to Lorelai and he got his answer. He hoped it wouldn't be too late to call Nicole to tell her that their trip was on. 


End file.
